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About 14 hours from now, the first of UCLA’s remaining recruits will make his announcement on ESPNU — kicking off a day that could push the Bruins to a top-five class. I’ll post updates here throughout the day, including a live chat that starts running at 5 a.m. Head coach Jim Mora is scheduled to talk to reporters later in the afternoon.

Here’s a look again at the schedule of announcements:

Tight end Chris Clark
Announcement: 5:30 a.m. PT, ESPNU
Still a two-horse race between UCLA and Michigan, this announcement might be the most dramatic one of the day for Bruin fans.

Scary to think signing day is Wednesday and I still don't know where I'm going this is so tough

The network has locked down commitment announcements for nearly all of the Bruins’ remaining targets, setting up what could be a program-altering day. UCLA already has a solid 2015 class that includes No. 1 quarterback Josh Rosen — who enrolled earlier this month — but getting the signatures of a few more stars next Wednesday will push it to one of the best in the country.

Here’s a look:

DeChaun Holiday, CB, 6-2/207, San Marcos (Calif.) Mission Hills
Rating: Four stars, No. 76 national / 11 position (Scout) … No. 102 national (Rivals)
Announcement: Feb. 1
Finalists: Arizona State, UCLA, USC, Washington
Latest: Regarded as a strong UCLA lean, Holiday is the only Bruin recruit left whose announcement won’t be televised on Signing Day. He’s a big athlete who could shore up UCLA’s secondary immediately. The defensive backfield was inconsistent in 2014, and could use a shutdown corner.

Chris Clark, TE, 6-5/253, Avon (Conn.) Old Farms School
Rating: Five stars, No. 23 national / 1 position (Scout) … Four stars, No. 79 / 1 position (Rivals)
Announcement: 5:30 a.m. PT, ESPNU
Finalists: Michigan, UCLA
Latest: Clark visited UCLA last weekend, but that still left Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh with plenty of time to make a push. The former 49ers and Stanford has a history of developing tight ends, and made an in-home visit to Clark on Wednesday. This race could go down to the wire, but the Bruins offer a better situation with Rosen already enrolled.

Sotonye Jamabo, RB, 6-2/201, Plano (Texas) West
Rating: Five stars, No. 18 national / 1 position (Scout) … No. 22 / 4 (Rivals)
Announcement: 6 a.m. PT, ESPNU
Finalists: Texas, UCLA
Latest: Top dual-threat quarterback Kyler Murray opted to stick with Texas A&M rather than flipping to Texas, which takes a bit of the steam out of the Longhorns’ recruitment. Still, trying to wrangle Jamabo out of his home state against local pressure won’t be a gimme. Continue reading →

The news got a bit buried as UCLA began its 38-20 demolition of USC at the Rose Bowl on Saturday night, but the Bruins picked up their biggest 2015 commitment yet an hour before kickoff.

Five-star prospect Keisean Lucier-South picked the Bruins over offers from just about every other team in the Pac-12, as well as top programs such as Alabama, Florida State and TCU. Ranked fifth-best outside linebacker in the country by Scout.com, and the third-best by Rivals.com, the 6-foot-4, 211-pounder is a consensus top-40 recruit across all positions.

The Orange Lutheran product is the second five-star recruit to commit to UCLA’s 2015 class. Top quarterback Josh Rosen has already signed a grant-in-aid agreement with the Bruins.

For the first half of this season, UCLA’s offensive line was hurting most on the edges.

The return of Conor McDermott at left tackle has stabilized the unit, but it was an obvious area of need heading into the next recruiting cycle. And on Saturday night, the Bruins added one more future piece in three-star JUCO recruit Zach Bateman.

The 6-foot-7, 320-pound tackle starred for Orange Coast College after becoming an All-Orange Coast League selection at Costa Mesa’s Estancia High. His commitment was first reported by Scout.com, and he should graduate in time to enroll early.

Bateman’s arrival would give UCLA a chance to test out more offensive line combinations during spring camp. The Bruins would return McDermott and starting right tackle Caleb Benenoch, as well as have a fully healthy Simon Goines — a former 20-game starter at tackle. Current redshirt freshman Poasi Moala would be a factor as well.

Cornerback Will Lockett announced his commitment to UCLA Thursday night, giving the Bruins the first defensive back of their 2015 class.

A consensus three-star receuit across major recruiting outlets, Lockett is 247Sports’ No. 77 cornerback nationwide, and its 113th-best Texan prospect at any position. Standing at 5-foot-11, 185 pounds, he is Scout.Com’s No. 70 cornerback.

The Manvel High defensive back also had offers from Missouri, Michigan State, and Washington.

Scout.com first reported that three-star prospect Rick Wade picked the Bruins Thursday evening over USC. The 6-foot-6, 230-pound defensive end notched 67 tackles for Santa Margarita High in Orange County as a junior last year.

He is the first defensive end in UCLA’s current recruiting cycle, with the Bruins having landed defensive tackle Bryce English last week.

The 6-foot-2, 310-pound Honolulu St. Louis product was among those who participated at Nike’s The Opening in Eugene, and his announcement was preceded by fellow campers Andre James — a four-star tackle — and athlete Stephen Johnson also verbally pledging to UCLA this week.

Four-star lineman Tevita Halalilo also committed to the Bruins in April.

UCLA has added yet another piece to its young and promising offensive line, one that started three true freshman for through half of its 10-win 2013 season.

On Thursday, four-star tackle Andre James committed to the Bruins during a ESPNU broadcast from Nike’s The Opening in Eugene. The 6-foot-5, 275-pound lineman from Herriman is ranked by Rivals.com as the third-best prospect in Utah and the 28th-best at his position nationwide. Scout.com ranks him as the country’s No. 13 tackle.

Picking UCLA over Ohio State, Oklahoma and USC, he touted his athleticism as his strength, telling The Oregonian, “Punch is always important and technique is always very important. But if you can move well, you can be coached well.” Continue reading →

For the second year in a row, UCLA has landed a receiver from Elk Grove (Calif.) Cosumnes Oaks.

Four-star wideout L.J. Reed committed to the Bruins, according to multiplereports. He follows the footsteps of former high school teammate Alex Van Dyke, who signed with UCLA this February as a top-40 prospect at his position.

Listed at 6-foot-3, 200 pounds, Reed is the seventh commitment in UCLA’s 2015 class and the first true wideout. Four-star athlete Jaason Lewis is listed as a receiver by Scout.com, but at 6-foot-3, 234 pounds, would likely be used inside.

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